However, in spite of those efforts, On Your Side Investigators found some of those unlicensed educators still working with students.

Still In School

The Ohio Department of Education permanently denied Varick Fuller a state license in 2015.

Among the reasons for the department’s decision, Fuller admitted to sending sexually explicit texts to a teenage girl while he was employed at Cleveland Central Catholic High School during a state hearing.

Those texts were far from Fuller’s first offense.

ODE sent Fuller a “Letter of Admonishment” for making inappropriate comments to students while working for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District in 2010.

So where did On Your Side Investigators find Fuller?

The Cleveland man was working as a “Student Success Coach” at Invictus High School, a charter school.

The job did not require a state license.

When On Your Side Investigator Sarah Buduson asked Fuller how he was hired, Fuller said he disclosed his history on his application.

He also vehemently denied he made inappropriate comments to a student at Cleveland Central Catholic High School.

Invictus High School marketing coordinator Mike Robinson declined On Your Side Investigators’ request for an on-camera interview. Robinson also refused to answer specific questions about how Fuller was hired, but he did place the blame on a private company the school hired to conduct background checks on employees.

Robinson also said the school fired Fuller a few hours after we informed them about his background. He also said school officials asked their students if Fuller made any inappropriate comments, but none came forward.

Trouble in Tennessee

The Ohio Department of Education permanently revoked Jeffrey Poulton’s teaching license in 2015 for having a “romantic relationship” with a student while employed at North Folk Schools in Licking County and engaging in a “romantic relationship” with a fellow teacher during school hours while employed at a school in Columbus.

The department’s decision did not keep Poulton out of the classroom.

We found he turned up in Tennessee and was soon in trouble again.

Poulton resigned from Sycamore High School in Pleasant View, a Nashville suburb, after he was accused of sending inappropriate Snapchats to a student.

Behind Bars

Daniel Burris, 45, is currently facing eight felony charges in Franklin County, including rape, gross sexual imposition, and unlawful sexual conduct with after he was accused of sexually abusing young boys he tutored at their homes.

Burris was hired as a tutor, even though Ohio suspended his teaching license for five years after he was accused of sending texts to students without their parents’ permission when working at Westerville City Schools in 2014.

ODE Response

So how do educators deemed unworthy of a state license end up in classrooms?

In an e-mail, Halpin said ODE “has mandatory reporting requirements, like teacher, social workers, etc.”

However, Halpin also repeatedly refused to answer specific questions about state policies and procedures, including when, how and how often ODE refers incidents involving serious educator misconduct to law enforcement, citing a state code stating “all information obtained during an investigation is confidential and is not a public record.”